The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) informs that, in accordance with point 66 of Annex B to Chapter 18, “Statistics”, of the National Programme for the Accession of the Republic of Moldova to the European Union for 2025–2029, approved by Government Decision No. 306/2025, and for the implementation of the Statistical Work Programme for 2026 (available only in Romanian) (Component 1, point 110 of the SWP), approved by Government Decision No. 758/2025, the NBS is carrying out experimental calculations based on data from the statistical survey ,,Road Freight Transport” (RFTS)¹˒². RFTS, which is currently being implemented, was designed to ensure the collection and production of road freight transport data in accordance with the requirements of the EU acquis, in particular Regulation (EU) No 70/2012.

RFTS provides for the weekly collection of primary data, with quarterly processing and dissemination of statistics on the volume of goods transported and freight transport performance, carried out by road freight vehicles registered in the Republic of Moldova.

According to Regulation (EU) No 70/2012on statistical returns in respect of the carriage of goods by road, the statistical observation and recording unit is the road freight vehicle with a maximum authorised weight of at least 3.5 tonnes, no more than 25 years old, and holding authorisations issued by the National Road Transport Agency (NRTA) for the carriage of goods for hire or reward and/or on own account. The reference population does not include enterprises and organisations located on the left bank of the Nistru River and in the municipality of Bender, as the survey cannot be organised in those territories. To ensure consistency and the provision of data during the transition to RFTS, and until the new survey is fully implemented, data collection also continues under the traditional statistical survey based on questionnaire No. 65-auto “Transport by Road Vehicles”, which covers only goods transported for hire or reward, as well as vehicles more than 25 years old.

According to the results obtained under RFTS, during January–March 2026, road freight vehicles holding authorisations for the carriage of goods for hire or reward and/or on own account transported 7.0 million tonnes of goods, while freight transport performance amounted to 1,710.6 million tonne-kilometres. Of the total volume of goods transported, 81.9% (5.7 million tonnes) was accounted for by national transport, while 18.1% (1.3 million tonnes) was carried in international transport (see Table 1).

In terms of freight transport performance, international transport accounted for 65.8% of the total tonne-kilometres, or 1,125.7 million tonne-kilometres, while national transport accounted for 34.2%, or 584.9 million tonne-kilometres.

Table 1. Volume of goods transported and freight transport performance in January–March 2026⁴

During the reference period, freight transport for hire or reward amounted to 4.0 million tonnes, accounting for 56.9% of the total volume of goods transported. Freight transport performance for hire or reward totalled 1,285.9 million tonne-kilometres, representing 75.2% of total tonne-kilometres. Within the structure of freight transport for hire or reward, goods transported in national traffic accounted for the largest share, amounting to 3.0 million tonnes, or 75.0% of the total volume of goods transported for hire or reward, while goods transported in international traffic totalled 1.0 million tonnes, or 25.0%. Freight transport performance in international traffic amounted to 954.1 million tonne-kilometres, representing 74.2% of the total tonne-kilometres performed for hire or reward, while national traffic accounted for 331.8 million tonne-kilometres, or 25.8%.

Figure 1. Volume of goods transported in January–March 2026

The volume of goods transported on own account amounted to 3.0 million tonnes, representing 43.1% of the total volume of goods transported. Freight transport performance on own account totalled 424.7 million tonne-kilometres, accounting for 24.8% of total tonne-kilometres. For goods transported on own account, national transport accounted for the largest share, amounting to 2.7 million tonnes, or 91.2% of the total volume of goods transported on own account. The volume of goods transported in international traffic amounted to 0.3 million tonnes, or 8.8%.

Figure 2. The distance travelled by goods transported between January and March 2026

Note:

¹ The information is presented excluding data for enterprises and organisations located on the left bank of the Nistru River and in the municipality of Bender.
² Experimental statistics are new and innovative statistics that are currently under development and evaluation. The methods and data sources used in compiling experimental statistics may be revised during the process of improving the methodology, based on the experience gained, including as a result of feedback and suggestions received from users.
³ RFTS is a statistical survey that collects and produces data on road freight transport carried out by vehicles registered in the Republic of Moldova. The data are used for compiling national statistics in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 70/2012 on statistical returns in respect of the carriage of goods by road.
⁴ In some cases, minor discrepancies may occur between the totals indicated and the sums of their component figures due to rounding.